Surf Cup Sports Creates $139 Million In Overall Economic Impact For San Diego
Soccer News: Right on the gorgeous pacific ocean, San Diego is America’s 8th largest city; located just a little over 100 miles south of Los Angeles and immediately north of the USA and Mexico border. With a population of over 1.35 million people, San Diego is a thriving capital of soccer. While many people say youth soccer has become a big business, few realize the huge economic impact of this sport, especially on America’s Finest City.
One of the most, if not the most prestigious, competitive youth soccer tournaments in America is the soccerloco Surf Cup presented by Surf Cup Sports. Held in San Diego, the slogan for this elite soccer tournament is The Best of The Best. Youth soccer teams travel from all over the country to compete and becoming a Surf Cup Champion is a life-long honor. Even being accepted into this tournament is an accomplishment. But who would think that Surf Cup is the city’s biggest draw for tourism with the exception of the famous Comic Con?
FACT: Surf Cup Sports generate more than 85,000 booked hotel rooms and an astounding $139 million in overall economic impact – making it the second largest generator of hotel rooms annually in the City of San Diego.
Backed by a study released by San Diego State University (SDSU) on the economic data, it is clear that soccer parents spend a lot of money. The SDSU report confirms youth soccer generates a huge impact on our economy. It is not just a feeling shared amongst the parents of elite youth soccer players who travel around the country for showcases and tournaments; it is a fact – youth soccer has a big impact on the tourism market.
Across the country, the Rock and Roll Marathon is known as a huge event held in San Diego and it is the envy of many tourists associations. Few people would ever think that any youth sporting event would even measure up close and fewer would realize the truth – Surf Cup Sports brings more than 490,000 visitors to San Diego annually; more than the Rock ‘N’ Roll Marathon, and just less than Comic Con.
“Since our founding more than 35 years ago as an all-star club for San Diego’s best youth soccer players, Surf has evolved into a national powerhouse in the youth soccer community, combining a successful club and a world-class sports event and facility management company,” said Mike Connerley, President and Tournament Director of Surf Cup Sports.
”We produce nationally renowned tournaments and events, bringing participants and their families to compete in Americas Finest City.” A world-class sports event management company, Surf Cup Sports’ leader is Connerley who is a consummate professional known for his attention to detail. With the single-minded goal of helping youth soccer players attract the attention of college coaches and gain scholarships, Connerley embarked on the quest of providing opportunities to showcase elite players years ago and has created an empire revered by colleagues, college coaches and players alike.
Former San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders and now President and CEO of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce said, “As the largest Chamber of Commerce on the West Coast, I want to express my support and enthusiasm for Surf Cup Sports and the enormous overall economic impact that their events have in the region. Thousands of small business benefit directly from the spectators and participants. People learn about San Diego from coming to a Surf Cup event. I hope to see Surf Cup Sports leverage their experience and host more events in San Diego.”
“The high volume of visitors is critical to the backbone of the tourism industry. Most importantly, these visitors book hotel rooms and make a variety of purchases, including food, entertainment and souvenirs, all of which benefits the local economy,” said Joe Terzi, President and CEO of the San Diego Tourism Authority.
Mike McDowell, Executive Director of the San Diego Sports Alliance said, “Surf Cup Sports does more than contribute to San Diego’s economy, they also invest in youth leadership and community development. Surf Cup Sports has been instrumental in helping kids achieve their college dreams by facilitating more than 2,000 college coaches to attend all events to recruit players, resulting in millions of dollars in sports scholarship awards.”
The future for San Diego looks bright. “Surf Cup Sports hosts many events through the year,” said Mark Testa Ph.D., Professor and Coordinator for the San Diego State University Center for Hospitality and Tourism. “It is likely that each event contributes further economic impact beyond what is reported here.”
“With approximately 85% of the youth soccer teams competing in Surf Cup traveling from outside the county, these events have a huge economic impact on our city,” said Rob Haskell, Director of Operations for Surf Cup Sports. “In 2015, Surf Cup is doubling in size as we will host the tournament at the Del Mar Polo Fields as well as at the new SoCal Sports Complex in Oceanside, even more teams will be traveling to San Diego to participate.
Connerley anticipates 35 events, at two complexes, that will bring in over 110,000 youth sports participants this year, and these attendees are among the most valuable tourists for any area. Why? Because youth soccer players bring their support systems when they travel. This means that a single youth soccer player often travels with his or her family which includes a mix of adults and children, all coming to the San Diego area and spending money. “Our events bring in players whose families usually stay longer and therefore spend more money on food and entertainment than most other major events,” said Haskell. After all, what parent travels to a soccer tournament and doesn’t spend money?
Even though the planning and execution of so many sporting events each year is very complex, Surf Cup Sports has been successfully navigating the process for more than 20 years. Surf Cup Sports utilizes the San Diego Polo Fields located at the intersection of Via de la Valle and El Camino Real. Even though all uses of the fields are at the discretion of the City of San Diego, which owns the lands, Surf Cup Sports has invested more than $1.5 million into daily maintenance and renovations of the fields in the last two years.
“We look forward to continuing being a valuable asset to the city of San Diego,” said Connerley. “We look forward to hosting more events in the future and retain the Del Mar Polo Field’s facility, for at least as long as I live, which will hopefully be a few more years.”
Connerley, who is known for not being very good at patting himself on the back for all he has paid forward said, “It’s not just about the revenue Surf Cups Sports brings to the City. Over $350K worth of donations is given annually to non-profit organizations and under privileged clubs, all because of these events,” said Connerley.
For Connerley, it’s about giving back. Not many companies make hoteliers and college coaches as happy as Surf Cup Sports. With the goal of producing the best youth soccer tournament in the country, the economic impact of Surf Cup is a powerful but secondary goal. Connerley’s effort is a great example of success bringing more success.
RELATED ARTICLE: Influential People In Youth Soccer: Mike Connerley
Editorial Note: The article was initially published with the figure $1.2 Million and was later corrected to reflect $1.5 million investment.
